Losses predicted for most Tasmanian farms

NEARLY two-thirds of Tasmanian farms will make losses this financial year, a forecaster believes.

It was the same story in 2012-13, according to the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resources Economics and Sciences.

The average Tasmanian broadacre farm business profit this financial year will be $0, ABARES believes.

It was just $600 in 2012-13.

Successful North-West farmer Richard Bovill said he had no idea how many Tasmanian farmers with small farms made a living.

"You drive through Tasmania and you drive through all these little back roads," Mr Bovill said yesterday."Down South, down in the south-east, there are farms everywhere.

"We know it's the big farms that are successful.

"For every big farm there are 50 little farms.

"I have got no idea how they make a living."

He said Tasmania had some large, progressive, innovative farms that were doing everything right, but the amount of productive land on farms was often limited by topography or land types, particularly in the North-West.

"I'm not saying some smaller farms aren't smart, but they just don't have the scale and some have maybe no debt so they exist on the smell of an oily rag."

ABARES expected average Tasmanian farm profits to be well down from 2011-12, when they were $66,390.

Nationally, it expected 64 per cent of farms to make losses this financial year, and an average profit of $17,000.

It predicted Tasmanian farm cash incomes would increase by about 12 per cent to an average $71,000 this financial year, mostly because of lower interest payments and less spending to buy sheep and beef cattle.

It expected an increase in income from beef cattle, but less income from crops.

It predicted a strong rebound in average dairy farm cash incomes in 2013-14, particularly in Tasmania (to $210,000) and some other areas.

It estimated 41 per cent of Tasmanian dairy farms had negative cash incomes in 2012-13.

It expected Tasmanian dairy farms to average $124,000 in profit this financial year, but 32 per cent of them to make losses.